Adjustable motor vehicle seat



Dec. 16, 1947. E. c. HoRToN ADJSTABLE MOTOR VEHICLE SEAT 2 Sheets-Sheet l Original Filed Jan. 2, 1943 INVENTOR ERwm C. Hom-0N BY @Maar- M1 ATTORNYS Dec. 16, 1947. Efc. HoRToN- ADJUSTABLE MOTOR VEHICLE sEAT 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed Jan. 2, 1943 INVENTOR ERwlN "C. Holm-0N E BY QM,M,M9 A ORNEYS Patented Dec. 16, 1947 2,432,895 ADJUSTABLE Moron vEHrcLE sEA'r Erwin C. Horton, Hamburg, N. Y., assignor to Trco Products Corporation, Buialo, N. Y.

Original application January 2, 1943, Serial No.

Divided and this application October .9, 1944, Serial N0. 557,771

5 Claims. (Cl. 155-14) 'I'his invention relates to the motor vehicle art and primarily to vehicle seats.

The object of the present invention is to provide a power operated seat adjustment by which' the I seat may be readily adjusted in an efficient manner and with the least effort on the part of the occupant.- The invention further resides in a seat adjustment mechanism which may readily be operated to bring the seat to the desired location with respect to the vehicle controls, in a most practical and facile manner.

A further object of the invention is to provide a power adjustment for a seat in which means are provided for automatically securing the seat in its adjusted position against manual movement away from I the vehicle controls and yet will permit the seat to be manually adjusted when desired.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure l is a fragmentary bottom plan view of a seat mounting having the improved power adjustment;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view thereof about on line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a detailed sectional View of the control valve, taken about on line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a transverse detailed sectional view through the seat latching means as seen from the plane of line 4-4 of Fig. 2; i

Fig. 5 is a detailed view depicting a slidable support for the seat; and

Fig. 6 is a diagrammatic illustration of a further modiled form of the invention showing the seat control valve and lock electrically operated. f

Referring more particularly to the drawing, the seat has an under frame I suitably supported on a track 2 by the antifriction rollers 3 and 4. The track is supported by a bracket 5 above the door of the vehicle, and xedly related to the track at each side of the seat is a rack rail 6 having a series of apertures 'l engaged by a pinion 8. The pinions are ilxed to the opposite ends of a transverse shaft 9 to rotate therewith and cooperate in equalizing the seat movement for insuring a well guided movement, the shaft being sup-,- ported from the under frame I by journal bearing brackets I0.

The power means for adjusting the seat comprises a chamber II having a piston I2 connected by a piston rod I3 to a bracket part I4 depending from the forward edge of the seat. As shown in Fig. 1, the uid motor may be disposed offcenter, in a convenient location toward one side of the seat, this being permitted by reason of the motion equalizing guiding action of the rack and pinion construction just described.

The control valve I5 is connected by branch conduits IB and l1 to the motor` chamber at opposite sides of the piston, the valve having a suction chamber I8 connectible to a source of pressure supply by the nipple I9. The chamber I8 opens at opposite ends through valve seats I9 into nipples 20 and 2l which in turn are connected to the branch conduits I6 and I1. A valve 22 is normally engaged with one of the seats I9' under the urge of the spring 23 while a second valve 24 is normally held on its seat by a spring 25, the latter valve being guided on a stem 2S which is fixedly carried by the valve 22. Consequently, the two valves are mutually held and guided in the chambered valve housing. 'I'he stem of each yvalve part 22, `2li is provided on its outer endv'vith a'shoulder 21 which slidably engages a finger 28 for lifting the valve from its normally engaged seat to an opposed atmospheric seat 29. Normally the seats or ports 29 are open to vent the piston chamber II at opposite sides of -the piston and when either valve is lifted from the its pressure port to a position closing the companion atmospheric port the operating pressure will act through the connected motor passage and unbalance the pressure in the motor chamber to operate the piston. Upon the release of the finger 28 the corresponding valve spring 23 (25) -will close the pressure communication and vent the fluid motor to the atmosphere to balance the piston.

The two ngers 28 are connected to`an arm 39 which in turn is connected by a pin and slot connection 3i to an operating lever 32 which in turn is pivotally mounted on a frame member 33 by a. pin 34, the pin and slot connection providing a play or lost motion arrangement by which the lever can have an idle movement in either direction from a neutral position. This idle motion is utilized for unlocking the seat for movement preliminary to the motor operation and to this end there is xed on the transverse motion equalizing shaft 9 a keeper in the form of a toothed wheel 35`with which engages a latch member 36 under the urge of a spring 31. The latch is pivotally mounted on the frame member 33 by a pin 38 and is formed with track portions 38 at opposite sides of the pivot pin 34 for the lever 32. The control lever is provided with pins 40 and 4I extending laterally from the lever at opposite sides of the fulcrum 34 and in overlying relation to the track portions 36, the arrangement being such that during the idle movement of the control lever from its neutral position either one of the pins 40 or 4| will depress the latch 36 out of engagement with the toothed wheel 35 and thereby free the seat for motor actuation, which follows upon continued movement of the control lever to actuate the corresponding one of the valves.

The control lever is conveniently located at an accessible point. In Fig. 2 it is shown as projecting forwardly from the seat and provided with a knob 42 within easy reach of the seat occupant. Upon lifting the knob 42 the pin 40 will disengage the latch 36 from its wheel and then lift upon the valve 24 to open communication between the pressure source and the forward end of the motor chamber, causing a pressure differential to move the piston and the connected seat forwardly. Upon the release of the knob 42 the valve 24 will close and the spring 3l will latch the seat in the given position. Depression of the knob 42 will cause the pin 4|` to swing the latch from the toothed wheel 35 and then unseat the valve 22 to establish pressure communication with the motor chamber at the rear side of the piston I2 for moving the seat rearwardly.

In Fig. 6 there is diagrammatically illustrated an electrical control as a substitute for the hand operated lever 32 in Figs. 1 and`2. To this end' there is provided a solenoid 43 associated with the upper valve in the housing 44 and a like solenoid 45 operatively related to the lower valve in the housing so that upon theclosing of the circuit by either one of the switches 46 or 4l the solenoid will act to withdraw the valve from its pressure port to a position for closing the normally opened atmospheric port. The valves in the housing may be similar to valves 22 and 24 in Fig. 3. The toothed wheel 35 has its latch 48 released by a solenoid 49 which is connected by the circuit wiring 50 for operation upon closing of either of the switches 46 or 41. By this arrangement the latch will be rendered inoperative upon the actuation of either valve to free the seat for motor operation.

From the foregoing it will be observed that adjustment of the seat forwardly or rearwardly and ease of understanding the invention, it is not thevintention thereby tovrestrict the invention sincel the inventive principles-herein involved are capable of assuming other physical embodiments without departing-from the spirit of the invention or the scope defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A motorvehicle having a'seat, means sup-,f

portingthe same for fore and aft adjustment, a uid motor operatively related to the aforesaid elements to adjust the seat on its supporting means. a lock operatively related to the first two elements to secure the seat against adjustment on the supporting means, a valve connected for regulating the admission oi' fluid under pressure to the motor, and a lever having a play connection with the valve for controlling the operation of the motor, said lever having a part acting on the lock to unlock the seat during the play functioning.

2. A motor vehicle having a seat, means adjustably supporting the seat and including a pair of side rack rails and a shaft carrying terminal pinions intermeshing with the rack rails to guide the seat during its adjustment, power means carried by one and reacting on the other of the first two named elements for adjusting the seat, lock means engageable with a shaft carried part to lock the pinions against riding on the rails. and control means operable first to unlock the seat and then actuate the power means, and upon release of the control means to arrest the power means and then re-lock the seat.

3. A motor vehicle having a support, a seat mounted thereon for back and forth movement, motion equalizing means cooperating with the seat and its support for guiding the seat in such movement and including a shaft journaled on the seat and rotatable by and during such seat movement, a toothed wheel fixed on the shaft, a latch pivoted on the seat for movement to and from a position of interengagement with the toothed wheel for locking the seat stationary, power means connecting the support to the seat for adjusting the latter, a control on the seat for regulating the power means, and a lever pivoted 'on the seat and having a play connection with the control and also having a pair of lugs one on each sideof the lever fulcrum arranged to alternately engage the latch to release the seat during the movement permitted by such play connection prior to actuation of the control.

4. A motor vehicle having a support, a seat mounted thereon for back and forth movement in a straight line, motion equalizing means cooperating with the seat and its support for guiding the seat in such straight line movement and including a shaft Journaled on one of the first two elements and having its opposite ends geared at spaced points to the other element for rolling contact thereon by and during such seat movement. seat locking means movably mounted on said one of the first two elements and detachably engaging the shaft to hold it against rotating, a fluid motor connecting the support to the seat off center and independently of the equalizing means to adjustablyvmove the seat as directed by the latter, a valve connected to the motor to start and stop the motor, and a common controla straight line, motionequalizing means cooperating with the seat and its support at opposite sides-'of the seat for guiding'the seat in such straight line movement `and including a shaft i `iournaled on the seat and having rolling contact on the support by. and du'ring such seat movement, seatylocking means 'detachably engaging the 'shaft to lock the same against turning and therebyarrest the seat, a fluidmotor reacting betweenthe seat and the' support independently of the equalizing-means to adjustablymove the 5 6 seat as guided by the latter, a, valve on the seat and connected to the motor to start and stop UNITED .STATES PATENTS the latter, and manual means on the seat con- Number Name Date necting with the valve and the locking means to 975,705 Melchior NOV. 15, 1910 render the latter ineffective and thereafter to 5 1,364,332 Koken Jan- 11, 1921 move the valve to a. motor starting position. 1,267,130 Skeith et al May 21, 1918 mwm Q HORTON, 2,235,239 Saunders Mar. 18, 1941 A v 2,242,247 Grant May 20, 1941 REFERENCES CITED 2,283,761 Richter May 19, 1942 2,174,636 McGregor Oct. 3, 1939 The following references are of record in the w ie of this patent: 

